Hard Water Damage:
How You Can Benefit from a Water Softening System
What is hard water?
As groundwater moves through soil and over rocks, mainly limestone, it picks up and dissolves different minerals, including calcium, magnesium, iron, and other metals. The water then carries these minerals with it creating hard water. Areas with more mineral-rich soil or high amounts of limestone will have harder water than areas with fewer minerals and limestone. If water accumulates less than 61 mg/L (milligrams per liter) of these dissolved minerals, the water is classified as being soft. Anything with 61 or more mg/L of dissolved minerals is classified into one of three hardness levels. These levels are defined as:
61- 120 mg/L- moderately hard
121-180 mg/L- Hard
>181 mg/L Very Hard
The vast majority of New York state's water is categorized as hard. In Monroe County, the water is classified as being very hard. Residents of Monroe County can see and feel the effects of hard water on their dishes, hair, skin, clothing, faucets, and pipes. When hard water flows over, and through these things, it leaves deposits of minerals behind. These leftover minerals can cause both short and long-term damage. Hard water damage is preventable with a water softener. Read on to learn more about how you may be affected by hard water.
Hard water and your appliances
You rinse your dishes before loading the dishwasher, spend extra money on detergents that promise to leave no spots, and still, there are spots on your plates, pots and glasses. What gives? You’re looking at one of the effects of hard water. Minerals in hard water, especially calcium, react with the detergent and create soap scum. Soap scum isn’t just lingering on your dishes. Inside your dishwasher is being coated in it as well.
The same minerals landing on your plates and inside the dishwasher are deposited in the water lines and valves supplying water to the appliance. Over time, these will build up and increase the pressure on the water supply lines in your appliances. Extra stress caused by the hard water buildup will lead to the appliances breaking down and shortening their life span. Your washing machine, for example, should have an average lifespan of 11 years. While using the washing machine, you can also expect to use more laundry detergent than you would if using soft water. Hard water causes the soap to curdle instead of lather leading to needing more soap to account for this. With hard water slowly damaging the inside of the washing machine, this lifespan can be expected to shrink to 8 years. In appliances such as your water heater, you can also expect your energy consumption to increase, impacting your bills and carbon footprint. Hard water buildup forces your water heater to work harder and can decrease efficiency by up to 48%. Even high-efficiency appliances aren’t immune to the effects of hard water. While they may seem like a good investment, they are just as likely to break down prematurely.
Hard water and your plumbing
You may be familiar with soap scum on your faucets and drains or even coating the inside of your tub, sink and toilet. It might feel like it's constantly accumulating, and it very well could be. When you run a faucet with hard water, the water’s minerals settle onto these fixtures repeatedly. Like in your washing machine, dishwasher, and other appliances, the soap interacting with the hard water creates a film on your fixtures. That soap scum isn’t limited to the outside of your faucets and drains; it's also making its way inside as well.
Any surface that regularly comes into contact with hard water is at risk of hard water buildup, even your toilet! Sometimes you can even see a white substance around the openings of faucets or drains. This substance is hard water buildup and can indicate your faucets, drains, and pipes are suffering from hard water buildup, similar to your appliances.
Without a water softener, the lifespan of your pipes will be reduced. This lifespan shortage applies to all types of pipes, neither; PVC nor metal pipes can avoid hard water buildup. Hard water buildup forces your plumbing system to work harder to push water through. With this added stress on your system, your pipes are more susceptible to cracks and leaks. When the inner workings of your plumbing system spring a leak, it can go unnoticed until it's too late. Your health could be put at risk from these leaks. A leak underground especially can allow contaminants into your water, and a leak inside can allow mold and mildew to develop inside your walls. Moisture from a leak will also attract pests such as termites, ants, and rodents seeking it out for nourishment.
Along with damage to your pipes, you can expect hard water buildup to clog your toilet and corrode the tank’s insides leading to costly repairs and replacements. Hard water buildup can dramatically reduce the lifespan of your toilet from six and a half years to just two years! In many cases, homeowners only discover these leaks once a stain has formed on a ceiling or wall or their water bill skyrockets from the wasted gallons of water.
Hard water and your hair and skin
Soap and hard water do not mix well. High calcium levels make it difficult for the soap to lather, leaving behind soap scum on whatever surface you were trying to wash. This applies to your shampoo and body wash as well! With hard water, you require more shampoo and soap to clean your hair and body; some are left lingering. How is this affecting your skin and hair?
Hard water could exacerbate your systems if you already struggle with psoriasis or atopic dermatitis, also known as eczema. When you rinse off in hard water, you’re not rinsing the entirety of the soap you’ve used. On contact, the minerals in hard water will strip away natural moisture and oils on your skin. The residue created by the hard water and soap interacting will further dry your skin out while it's lingering on your body. Drying out your skin will only further irritate it. Hard water residue isn’t doing any favors for acne-prone skin, either. Your pores will become clogged by the residue prompting your body to create more oils and leading to worsening acne. Your hair can be suffering from similar effects.
Just like the skin on your body, your scalp produces natural oils and moisture. Hard water will strip out the oils and moisture, affecting your scalp and hair. When your scalp cannot create or maintain necessary oils, you’re left with dry, flaky skin. This can be both uncomfortable and unsightly.
The same residue coating your skin will be left on your hair, creating a barrier preventing the hair from absorbing moisture. The result is dry, brittle hair that becomes more prone to breakage, thinning, tangling, and slowed growth. After so many washes with hard water, your hair will become weighed down, creating a flat appearance. Curly hair will especially see this effect as it begins to lose its curl. Hard water effects on your hair can be mostly reversed with a clarifying shampoo or treatment and adding a hard water filter to your shower head. However, one irreversible effect will be seen on colored hair. Hard water will cause the pigments in colored hair to fade quickly or become discolored.
Hard water and your clothing
Your clothing is yet another item in your home being affected by hard water. Laundry detergent is affected by hard water, similar to other soaps in your home. Increased detergent becomes necessary to wash your clothing, thereby increasing costs associated with laundry. Minerals carried by hard water seep into the fabric of your clothing, reducing its lifespan by up to 15%. How does that happen?
Along with discoloration, hard water will interfere with the integrity of the fibers in a piece of clothing. Clothing washed in hard water becomes more prone to fraying, rips and tears, and becomes stiff and hard. Yellow, gray, or white stains can appear on clothing from hard water that can be difficult to remove. Many people use extra fabric softener and stain remover, wash clothes several times, or use excess hot water to combat the effects of hard water on clothing, further increasing costs related to laundry.
Testing for hard water
Hard water is a costly nuisance to yourself and your plumbing. If you suspect your home may be one of the 85% of American homes suffering from hard water, it isn’t difficult to confirm or relieve your suspicions. At Pride Plumbing, we’re happy to come to your home and use a test kit to determine if your water is hard and exactly how hard it is. You can conveniently schedule online, call us, or use one of our recommended methods to test for hard water yourself. There are several easy ways to see if you have hard water without the assistance of a professional.
Shine a flashlight down your drains or inside your faucets. Do you see white coating or buildup? If you do, you're most likely looking at hard water buildup. Depending on how advanced the buildup is, you may see flakes in the water after a faucet is run. Alternatively, you can fill a clear water bottle about two-thirds of the way with tap water, add two to four drops of liquid soap, and shake for 15 seconds. What does the water now look like? Fluffy bubbles and clear water are a sign that your water is soft. If there are few bubbles and the water becomes cloudy, you likely have hard water. If you want to know about your exact level of hardness, testing kits similar to what you may use for a pool or spa can be found online or in home improvement stores. Maps are available online, and you can call your local water authority if you’re still unsure.
What to do if you have hard water
Repairing damage caused by hard water can be difficult, but preventing it doesn’t have to be. Investing in a water softening system is an easy way to save time, money and stress. When hard water flows through your water softening system, ion exchange takes place. A chamber inside the filter is filled with resin beads, usually polystyrene. The resin beads are charged with sodium ions giving them a negative charge. Minerals in hard water, such as calcium and magnesium, have a positive charge, the opposite of sodium ions. Opposites attract, so the sodium ions in the resin bead pull the magnesium and calcium towards them. When this happens, it strips the hardness out of the water, leaving you with soft water.
You can choose one of two types of water softeners, a point-of-use system or point-of-entry system. If you’re unsure which option is best for you, consider what you’re trying to achieve. Are you concerned mainly about the effects hard water may have on your skin and hair or drinking water? A point-of-use water softener may be best for you. A point of use water softener goes into a specific fixture creating soft water only from that source. If you want to see the benefits of soft water in your appliances and pipes, a point-of-entry water softening system would be the best fit for you. A point of entry water softening system softens water as it enters your home before it gets to any interior water lines.
If you’re still unsure which system would best fit you, one of our certified technicians can help you figure it out! Give our friendly customer care team a call or schedule online to take your first steps towards soft water.